Modeo Brings Live TV to Your Phone

Question marks regarding price and channel availability swirl around the cell phone's beta version, which otherwise looks and sounds quite promising

by Arik Hesseldahl

Editor's Rating:

The Good: Live TV that's actually watchable on a mobile phone

The Bad: Small service area; limited channel offerings; confusing to control

The Bottom Line: Plenty of potential once Modeo gets beyond the testing phase

Reader Reviews

I could never understand all the hubbub over watching video on a cell phone, and to some extent I still don't.

My current handset, a Motorola (MOT) KRZR, plays short herky-jerky video clips from a Verizon Wireless (VZ) multimedia service that I rarely have the patience to load, let alone watch. Once in a while, when I'm waiting in a parked car for someone or stuck in a taxi crawling through traffic, I'll watch a short clip from ABC News (DIS). But I can count on one hand the number of times I've actually done this in the year or so that I've had the phone.

And so it was with a great deal of skepticism that I approached the Modeo, a clever little mobile phone with a built-in TV. That's right—live TV. Not the video hors d'oeuvres served on demand from Get It Now, for which I have neither need nor desire to pay for (note to self: cancel video on cell-phone plan).

Cellular Broadcast

The TV available on Modeo comes to the handset over the air using a technology known as DVB-H (digital video broadcasting–handheld). This essentially means that Texas-based Modeo takes a live satellite feed from the networks and redistributes it via the wireless phone network as a separate signal, independent of the signal that carries voice and Internet data.

The result isn't perfect, but it's much, much better than what I get on the KRZR. (Verizon Wireless offers a 3G wireless service that streams live TV programming to compatible devices (see BusinessWeek.com, 5/3/07, "The LG VX9400: Mobile TV Done Right").) As I write, I'm viewing a live feed of CNBC (GE) that is only 10 seconds behind that on the cable-fed office TV.

This video quality is good enough that it's not just bearable, but watchable, even on a screen that measures about 2.25 inches diagonally. If I had to keep a constant eye on CNBC but couldn't be tied to a desk all day, the Modeo would come in handy—though I must say it can be hard to read the stock quotes.

The channel offerings were a little slim. Included are CNBC, Fox News, Fox Sports (NWS), MSNBC, E! Entertainment Television, and Discovery Network. There are also eight selections from Music Choice, a music streaming service.

But then, this is just a limited trial of a service that currently only works in the New York City area. The handset, made by HTC, runs Microsoft (MSFT) Windows Mobile and works on T-Mobile's (DT) network, which operates using GSM/GPRS technology. Modeo says that because TV signal is separate from the wireless phone signal, it could work just as well with the CDMA networks operated by Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel (S).

Sound Off

I am also impressed with the Modeo's battery life. As of this writing, it's nearing 6 p.m. and I've had the handset tuned to CNBC since 3 p.m. The screen went blank at 5:57 p.m., to be exact. Two hours, 57 minutes. Not bad.

A few times during the last few hours the screen has gone dark for about a second, clearly indicating a touch of signal interference, which was no big deal. The sound was excellent. Speakers on the back played at a loud volume to the annoyance of my office neighbors, so I plugged in a pair of headphones. I also expected the body of the phone to get really hot after displaying TV for a long time, but it didn't, even after a couple hours. I've held lukewarm cups of coffee that were far hotter than this phone displaying TV.

I had a few problems with controls. Switching out of TV mode and back into the phone and PDA functions left the sound from the TV show playing. And at one point I managed to mute the sound from the TV programming, and I had a heck of a time figuring out how to get it back. I never did figure out how I muted it in the first place, nor for that matter how I unmuted it.

Time Will Tell

There's uncertainty about how the service will be structured and what it will cost. Modeo doesn't currently have plans to introduce a commercial service on its own, but rather to go through wireless carriers. No word yet on when that will happen or how much it, or the device itself, will cost.

Questions and complaints aside, the Modeo is a respectable smartphone with all the features you'd expect: calendar, contacts, Web browsing, still and video camera, voice calls. It's easy to dial, very light, and measures 4 inches high, 2 inches wide, and a little less than a half-inch thick.

If this is the way that TV is going to come to the wireless phone in the U.S., I like what I see and I hope to see it widely available soon—though I hope for more flexibility in choosing channels. I myself could do without sports channels, but I know others who would prefer an all-sports package without CNBC.

And in about a year, when the contract on this KRZR runs out, I for one will be taking a closer look at Modeo.

Hesseldahl is a reporter for BusinessWeek.com.